The electronic version of the book is created by http://www.enverhoxha.ru Tourist Guidebook of Albania TOURIST GUIDEBOOK OF ALBANIA THE «NAIM FRASHËRI» PUBLISHING HOUSE ― TIRANA 1969 HOW TO USE THIS GUIDE-BOOK This guide-book is written with the purpose of serving the foreign tourists as well as all those that come to visit Albania; as such it offers them all the information they would need, be it prior to their arrival in the country, or during their trip and sojourn in Albania. In Part One of the book the reader will find general data concerning Albania. In case you want to know the geographic position of the country in the Balkan Peninsula, its boundaries, the number of its inhabitants, the density of its population, the main towns and cities as well as its capital city ― all this information you will find in Part One of the present Guide-Book. In this part you will get acquainted with the geo­ graphic relief of the country, with its climate, hydrography, with its plant and animal life. This information is followed by a short historical survey of Albania, beginning with the Illyrians, the most ancient in­ habitants of our country and forefathers of the present day Albanians, and ending with the great National Liberation Struggle of the period 1941-1944. In Part One the reader will find data regarding the Albanian language and literature, about Albanian's archaelogical, artistic, ethno­ graphic and folkloristic heritage and treasures. Part One ends with some data concerning the great advances made in Socialist Albania within no longer a period of time than a quarter of a century, advances to be seen everywhere ― in industry, education and culture, communications and health services. 5 What are the most interesting itineraries that the foreign traveller may follow during his sojourn in Albania? These itineraries are described in Part Two of the present Guide-Book according to the highway of access and those to be followed by the visitor while in Albania. In the itineraries the tourist will find information which he say need while travelling within the country, as for example, the state of the roads and highways, the distances between the various towns and cities, va­ rious localities and villages along the route to be followed, information about the archaeological, historical and artistic monuments to be found, information about the ethnographic peculiarities of the various regions, description of the landscape and scenic beauties, etc. Here he will get an idea of the profound changes that have taken place throughout the country: the great strides forward made in the sphere of agricul­ ture, the model farms and plantations set up in the years following the liberation of the country in lands that once were barren wastes, the new industrial and residential centers, the exploitation of the natural resources and their employment to the service of the country and the people, etc. In Part Three of the Guide-Book you will find a summary of the most important data of economic and practical nature. If you are interested to know something about the Albanian currency and its value in compa­ rison with foreign monetary units, something about the banking system, the post, telephone and telegraph service, about the hotel and transport accomodations, etc., all these you will find in Part Three of the present Guide-Book. The present Guide-Book, as one may well see, is prepared for and serves the foreign tourist by giving him all the necessary informations that he way wish to have on Albania. In separate circulars and in various publications handed to him during his visit to towns and regions, as well as archaeological centers and museums, he will find more information on Albania, a part of which will be imparted to him orally by the wardens at these places. We hope that the present Guide-Book will help the foreign tourist and traveller to come to know Albania better, to know its ancient past and its wonderful present built by her hard-working people, to know its archaeological, artistic and ethnographic wealth, the rare natural beauty of the land. 6 First Part SOME GEOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION ABOUT THE LAND I. Its Geographic Position, Its Boundaries and Its Size Albania is situated on the western part of the Balkan Peninsula between 39°38' and 42°39' northern geographic latitudes and 19°16' and 21°4' eastern geographic longitudes. On the northeast it borders with Yu­ goslavia, on the southeast with Greece, whereas in the west it borders with the Adriatic and Ionian seas. The total length of its boundary line is 1,204 kilometers, that is to say 419 kilometers for every 1,000 square kilometers of its territory. Of this total length, 577 kilometers are land boundaries, whereas 472 kilometers are sea and 155 kilometers are river and lake boundaries. Albania possesses 16.4 kilometers of coast line for every 1,000 square kilometers of land surface. In this respect Albania occupies the second place in the Balkan Peninsula, its total land surface being 28,748 square kilometers. II. The Relief of the Country Albania is mainly a mountainous country. More than two thirds of the territory is made up of hills and mountains, whereas the plains with an altitude up to 200 meters above sea level do not comprise even one third of it. The average altitude of the country is 714 meters above sea level. Because of the numerous valleys that intersect the mountain ranges and of a whole series of depressed areas, sunken deep between the mountains, the relief is highly accentuated, with a large number of small units that form landscapes and sceneries of rare beauty and, therefore, of great touristic value. These small units are closely inter­ woven with one another to form larger units, quite distinct from one another: the Alps of North Albania, the Central Mountain Region, the Southern Mountain Region and the Western Lowlands. The Alps of North Albania are situated along the right side of the Drin Valley. Although these represent the smallest natural unit, they offer the most rugged landscape full of contrasts caused by their tectonic and geological structure as well as because of the intensive action of outside agents upon them. On the whole, their average alti­ tude is over 1,500 meters above sea level, but the greater part of them exceeds the 2,000 meters mark by far (the highest peak, Jezerca, is 2,693 meters above sea level). The form of the relief is very rugged, 9 with pyramid-like mountains full of deep ravines and valleys which make them look higher than they are. The topmost parts of the mountain ranges are dotted with a large number of glacial circles, many of which have taken the form of lakes, whereas their flanks are covered with pine and oak forests. The interaction of the glaciers is seen not only at the mountain tops but also in the valleys, which have the aspect of dales or depressions in the form of gigantic water basins, surrounded by mountains that rise up to 2,000 meters above them (the valleys of Boga and Thethi). The passage from one valley to another is difficult and possible only through the high passes. Because of the highly accentuated character of the relief, the erosive activity of the streams and gullies is considerable. The structure of the northern Alps is quite characteristic. They look like gigantic vaults descending usually from the center towards the periphery. From the highest central point of the vault, the Jezerca block, a whole series of narrow valleys radiate in all directions, separated by mountain crests which, exactly like the valleys, converge towards the center of the Northern Alps. You will not come across such a relief in any other part of the territory of Albania. Because of the scanty surface of arable land, agriculture in these valleys is confined to the minimum. The economy of the region of the Northern Alps is based primarily on forestry and animal husbandry. The area is very sparsely populated. The Central Mountain Region, situated between the valley of the river Drin and the valleys of the rivers Lower Devoll and Upper Osum, differs in aspect from the region of the Northern Alps. Although the average altitude of the Central Mountain Region differs slightly from that of the region of the Northern Alps, the forms of the relief here are not rugged. In the principal orientation of the relief, with the main mountain ranges and valleys pointing from northwest to southeast, one notices a much greater uniformity than in the Northern Alps, although the numerous crosswise valleys and depressions give it quite an un­ even and rugged character. Because of the presence of quite a num­ ber of wider valleys, agriculture plays a much more important role in the economy of the region, although here too, as in the case of the region of the Northern Alps, forestry, animal husbandry and mining predominate over agriculture. The region has important deposits of several mineral resources (chromium, nickel, copper, etc.). The density of the population here is greater because of the greater width of its valleys. In the general structure of the relief there are three main mountain ranges running from northwest to southeast (the highest mountain peak Mt. Korabi — 2,751 meters above sea level — is situa­ ted on the easternmost range), as well as two long stretched depres­ sions between them, running along the same direction (the depression 10 of Mati and Upper Shkumbini and the depression of Drini i Zi). In all these three ranges the powerful glacial activity has dug up cir­ cles, many of which form beautiful lakes glistening as jewels amidst the forest, thus forming one of the most fascinating landscapes of the region (the lakes of Lura).